Huntington Beach : Restoration of Pier and Cafe Will Be Celebrated

Two and a half years after storm-generated waves pummeled the Huntington Beach Pier and so severely damaged the End Cafe that it had to be torn down, city officials and the public will celebrate the reopening of the structure and a new cafe.

Mariachis, food vendors and a boat parade will highlight the festivities Saturday that will be presided over by Mayor Ruth Bailey. About $900,000 in repairs have been made to the pier and the new cafe, which features a second floor to be used for meetings at a cost of about $400,000.

The celebration has been dubbed “ROMP on the DEC,” which stands for Re-Opening of the Municipal Pier and Dedication of the End Cafe. Festivities begin at 4 p.m.

The pier has borne the brunt of bad weather several times, first losing a center section to an angry sea in 1906. Although it was rebuilt, another storm knocked the entire structure down four years later.

After passage of a $70,000 bond issue, the pier was reconstructed in concrete in 1914, only to lose the end section twice in the late 1930s. The only work done on the pier since then was the construction of new floors and railings in 1949 and some minor refurbishing in 1973.

The pier is credited with creating the beach area itself. Because it causes sand to settle around it, a beach that was measured at 50 feet from land to sea in 1913 now stretches about 350 feet. The pier also contributes to the good surfing conditions in the area.